9 - FRANCESCO PIGE (1822-1862)

FRANCESCO PIGE (1822-1862) Portrait of Negri family with Acropolis in the backround signé et daté « F. PIGE 1850 » (en bas à gauche) huile sur toile 124 x 115 cm. (48.8 × 45.3 in.) oil on canvas Footnotes: Provenance Private collection, Athens. Pige gave us the most beautiful examples of early Greek portraiture. M. Lambraki-Plaka This tour de force of 19th-century family portraiture shows an accomplished artist at the height of his artistic powers, wonderfully blending echoes of the German Renaissance with influences of 17th c. Dutch masters. Magnificent in its modest grandeur and utterly characteristic in both style and sentiment, the painting encompasses the defining elements of Pige's unique expressive language: meticulous attention to detail, clarity of line, rich colour, a miniature-like, crystalline brushstroke, and a predilection for the naive coupled with a strong sense of realism. Despite the stylistic austerity and the formal rigidity, which reflect a strict social decorum, the painting is imbued with intuitive sophistication and a childlike freshness of vision that renders the subjects vividly alive right down to the last detail. While family portraiture is a rare occurrence in 19th-century Greek painting-the most notable exception being N. Kounelakis's, The artist's family, painted a few years later-Portrait of Negris family with Acropolis in the background- proudly continues the long European tradition of representing the family as a cohesive group led by a dominant male. Indeed, standing behind a scholar's desk and reciting a text from an open book while raising his index finger in a didactic gesture, Constantinos Negris-a prominent professor at the newly established University of Athens, who also fought in the Greek War of Independence -leaves no doubt as to who sets the tone in this household. Yet, his compositional weight does not overwhelm the rest of the sitters. Rather, as seen in many 17th-century Dutch group portraits, the integrated ensemble ultimately prevails over the individual. The viewer's eye harmoniously wanders from face to face, never losing sight of the group. As much as their painstaking realistic depiction calls for close visual attention, each person draws from the presentational dynamic of the whole. The viewer's eye is invited into the picture through the gesture of the young girl in the lower left corner who extends a rosebud-a symbol of love-to her siblings on the right. The gaze travels seamlessly from her hand to the hand of her sister who already holds a rose, and then inevitably to the boutonniere of her older brother in the upper right, before coming full circle in the buttonhole of the figure standing on the left. This circular movement of roses, which metaphorically embraces the entire family, denotes the enduring bonds of love keeping them united. The setting is unmistakably that of a noble, prosperous, and cultured household, signalled by the elegant costumes, the plush cushions, the bookcase glimpsed behind the velvet curtain on the top left, and the lavish carpet, which repeats the rose theme to reinforce its symbolism. The geographical location is revealed through an opening in the upper right corner, offering a view of the Athens Acropolis under the brilliant blue skies of Attica. In the spirit of Romanticism and Neoclassicism prevailing across Europe at the time, the timeless monument also serves to remind the viewer of the glorious legacy of a nascent Modern Greece, which had won its independence just a few decades prior. This wonderful vignette, which provides an escape from the otherwise shallow compositional space, is crowned by a winding vine, a symbol of growth and prosperity, and a visual metaphor for how the lives of family members remain permanently woven together. This symbolism, which projects deep confidence in the family's future, is further accentuated by the dove in the hand of the young Phocyon Negris right in the centre of the canvas-an emblematic motif in European child portraiture laden with historical, religious, and emotional meaning. Finally, a beautiful wall painting, appropriately flanked by two fluted classical columns and framed by a running Greek key border, displays the allegorical image of Nike holding a wreath, poised to crown what seems to be an exemplary family with a promising future destined to help restore Greece to her former glory. For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com